Grand Organ Festival at Lincoln Cathedral this autumn

Autumn in Lincoln has a strong musical streak this year, and the Grand Organ Festival at the cathedral is the main reason. The recitals run on Tuesday evenings at 7pm, with doors opening at 6:45pm, and the series is still going for a few more weeks. Tonight's concert is the one happening right now, and the festival carries on next Tuesday.

The first four recitals have already taken place. Jeffrey Makinson, Organist and Assistant Director of Music at Lincoln Cathedral, opened the series on 22 September with works by Buxtehude, Mendelssohn, Eben and Duruflé. James Gough, Director of Music at St John the Evangelist in Upper Norwood, followed on 29 September with pieces by Bach, Franck, Bridge and Duruflé. On 6 October, Philip Rushforth, Organist and Master of the Choristers at Chester Cathedral, played music by Alcock, Bowen, Hollins and Roger-Ducasse. The series then moved to David Pipe, Organist at Huddersfield Town Hall, who performed Franck, Guilmant, Fleury and Vierne on 13 October.

Tonight's event is a little different from the solo recitals. Titled Organ Extravaganza, it brings together the Lincoln Cathedral organists and the Lincoln Cathedral Choir. The programme features Bach's Toccata and Fugue in D minor, Widor's Toccata and a selection of choral favourites. Tickets cost £5, which is less than the £10 charged for the other recitals in the series.

Next Tuesday, 27 October, Daniel Cook takes the organ loft. He is Master of the Choristers and Organist at Durham Cathedral, and his programme includes Bach, Whitlock and Reubke. Tickets for this recital are £10. Each evening, a screen lets the audience follow the recitalist from the nave, and there is a chance to meet the organists after the performance. Tickets are non-returnable and non-refundable, so it is worth checking the details before you buy.

The instrument itself has a long story behind it. The Father Willis organ was built by Henry Willis in 1898, and it was the last cathedral instrument he completed himself. It has around 4,000 pipes, and its case dates from 1826, although it was altered to take the new organ. It was dedicated on St Hugh's Day, 17 November 1898, before a congregation of 4,700. It is also noted as the first British cathedral organ to be blown by electricity, though at its inauguration the city's power station was not yet running, so soldiers of the Lincolnshire Regiment pumped the bellows by hand. Harrison & Harrison restored it in 1960 and again in 1998, when a tremulant was added to the Choir Organ and new coupling and piston systems were fitted.

The festival is a good chance to hear that organ played by a range of visiting and local musicians, while the cathedral itself provides a striking setting for an autumn evening.